There are not many open positions on the 2026 Phillies roster heading into Spring Training.
A couple spots are up for grabs in the bullpen, and a final place on the team’s bench highlights what is at stake once the Phillies start to get the ball rolling when Grapefruit League play gets underway next week.
Right now, three spots are essentially accounted for.
Otto Kemp expects to be the other half of the left field platoon with Brandon Marsh. He can also spell Alec Bohm at third base when needed. One of either Rafael Marchan or Garrett Stubbs will be the backup catcher, and who can forget infielder Edmundo Sosa?
The fourth and final spot will be between a handful of players currently getting ready for camp or any other big-league-ready bats the team might sign from now until Opening Day.
Here are the four players currently in Clearwater who are looking to win the battle:
Dylan Moore signed a minor league contract with an invite to Spring Training with the Phillies at the end of January, The Athletic's Will Sammon reported.
Moore, 33, begins his eighth big-league season, spending the first six with Seattle before splitting last season between the Mariners and Texas Rangers. Moore’s career slash line is .206/.310/.383 with a .693 OPS in 689 career games.
A glove-first utility man, he won a Gold Glove in 2024, playing 49 games at shortstop, 45 at third base, 37 at second base while adding 23 in the outfield and 11 at first base. In his Major League career, he has played every position except catcher.
He can make up to $3.25 million with plate appearances and active roster bonuses and would serve as a more seasoned Swiss army knife for Rob Thomson.
Outfielder Bryan De La Cruz has momentum coming into Spring Training after being named the LIDOM MVP award winner playing for the Toros del Este — the 29-year-old hit .301 with 40 RBIs to take home the top honor.
De La Cruz inked a minor league deal with Philadelphia back in November after appearing in 16 games with division rival Atlanta last season. He went 9-for-47 at the plate (.191) and has had stints with Pittsburgh and Miami. 2023 and 2024 marked the best stretch for De La Cruz, where he combined to smack 57 doubles and 40 home runs and drive in 146 runs in 302 games with the Marlins, but he has tapered off significantly since.
Fans are familiar with Johan Rojas and how his season panned out last year. He rotated with Brandon Marsh in center field until after the trade deadline, when the Phillies acquired Harrison Bader.
His performance at the plate was less than desired, posting a .569 OPS and hitting .224 in 152 at-bats. Rojas spent the rest of the season in Triple-A Lehigh Valley.
He represents the lone viable option as a defensive replacement in the outfield as it currently stands.
Gabriel Rincones Jr. has the most intrigue and upside of the quartet, but he will get a delayed start to try to be on the outside track to make the Opening Day roster. It was reported on Thursday that the outfielder is dealing with knee soreness and will miss the start of Grapefruit League action.
The Phillies added Rincones Jr. to their 40-man roster this offseason. He turns 25 on March 3, and 2026 marks a pivotal year for the outfielder who has been ranked as a Top 30 prospect for the organization.
He is the lone left-handed hitter of the four players vying for the final bench spot.
With Lehigh Valley last season, he played in 119 games, slashing .240/.370/.430 with a .799 OPS. He missed some time due to injury but showed his power by clubbing 22 doubles and 18 home runs to go with 21 stolen bases. He also set the Lehigh Valley single-season franchise record with 80 walks.
Rincones Jr. did have drastic splits at the dish. Against right-handed pitchers, he hit .261 with a .392 on-base percentage and a .480 slugging percentage with a respectable .873 OPS across 356 at-bats.
In a much smaller sample size against lefties, it was evident he struggled against southpaws. He went 6-for-56, with all six hits being singles.
It was unlikely Rincones Jr. would make the team out of Spring Training even if he was not dealing with his knee injuries, as he needs more seasoning in Triple-A, but he looks to pick up where he left off when he closed out 2025 slashing .293/.422/.586 with 10 home runs with a hard hit rate of 52% in his final 40 games.
If he does, Rincones Jr. potentially could find his way on the Phillies roster at some point this season as a left-handed power bat off the bench.
